Human pyramids becoming increasingly extreme

by Danny Kichi on Fri, Sep 26, 2014

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Yesterday, I read an article on a Japanese website about the increasing number of injuries among school kids when taking part in human pyramids. The pyramids are getting bigger, taller, and therefore more dangerous. The photos of these kids on top each other in pyramids did look dangerous, but they got nothing on these dudes from South Asian countries.

Japanese school kids are falling off these ridiculous human pyramids from very high up, and at some point they may have to reassess the situation. The pyramids have definitely grown in scale since I was a kid; it's gotten to the point where they might as well be called extreme human pyramids. They're making pyramids not with a few kids, or ten or twenty, but almost a hundred. It looks fun, but also quite dangerous. In 2012 alone, there were a total of 6533 accidents at elementary schools due to pyramid accidents! In the last ten years, there were 20 accidents that left kids permanently injured. That's too many.

But as far as I can tell, there are other crazy human pyramids out there, most notably in South Asia. The human pyramids there are completely out of control! Granted, they're adults compared to the school kids in Japan, but that's not the issue here. Forming the largest pyramid you can in a school field is one thing. Forming a crazy, contorted human pyramid while on a motorcycle (with no helmets) is another, and that's exactly what these guys do!

Obviously, the human pyramid world is alive and well, evolving, just like everything else. I hope all extreme pyramid participants stay safe as they reach for the stars.

Who knows? One day human pyramids might even become an Olympic event! If it does, expect India to win a few golds.